Chair



` Feb., 23 ma,

` 1,574,088 o. H. HANSEN CHAIR Filed Nov. 28, 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet l ATT'RN EY- Feb. 23 19m 1,574,088

o. H. HANSEN CHAIR Filed Nov. ,28, 1921 2 SheseS-Sheel'I 2 -Em l -Fjfm ATTI: RN EY.

Patented Feb, 23, 1926.

i 1,574,088- vunirte!) srares PATENT ORF-ICE,

OSWALD H. HANSEN, OF PORT WASHINGTON, l/VISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR TO GILSON MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF IORTVWASHINGTON, WISCONSIN, A CORPORA- TION OF WISCONSIN.

CHAIR.

Application led November 28, 1921. Serial No. 518,244

To all whom t may concern.' 4 y Be it knownv that OswALo Hl HANSEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at lort lfi'ashington, in the county of Ozaukee and State of lWisconsin, has invented a certain new and useful Chair, of which the following `is a specification. y

This invention relates in general to improvements in the art of manufacturing articles-of furniture, and relates more specifically to improvements in the construction of tiltable revolving' chairs and ,the like.

A general object .of the invention is to provide 'a chair which is simple in construction and efficient in operation. Another' general object of the invention is to provide improved seat supportingl structure for tiltablc revolving); chairs.

'Most of the prior' commercial chair irons for tilting revolving chairs are objectionable since they embody in their assemblage, at least one orl more cast metal elements. Due to the rough handlingy to which chairs of this type are often subjected, the cast metal elements are frequently broken thereby disabling' the chair and necessitating renewal of the broken parts. The tilting chairs of the prior art are moreover squeaky in operation even when frequently lubricated, the squeaking being' due to the fact. that the springs are displaced transversely of their axes during tilting; of the seat. A further' serious objection to the prior chairs of the revolving type, is that they cannot be readily dismantled for stora ge and shipment, and reassembled in order to make them ready for use.4 Still another objection to prior commercial chair irons is their high cost of manufacture, it being customary to provide for the higher grade chairs, supporting` structures which are of entirelydifferent design and construction from those employed in the lower grade'V chairs. r:these are only a few of the defects in construction and operation of the tiltable revolving` chairs of the prior art, which have made such devices generally unsatisfactory and inei'iicient in operation.

The present invention contemplates ,the provision of a seat supporting' structure for tilting' revolving chairs and the like, which may be properly termed a chair steel since the use of cast elements and iron are entirely eliminated: which is exceedingly quiet in operation regardlesso-f neglect in its lubrication; which may be readily and quickly dismantled and assembled Whenever desirable; which may be manufactured and sold at minimum cost; and which is suiciently neatv and compact in appearance to enable its utilization on chairs of any grade. Y

Some of the more important specific objects ofthe present invention may be enumerated as follows :-To provide a seat support for chairs, which is simple and rugged in its construction and which willpresent a neat and highly finished appearance. To provide a chair support which enhances the comfort afforded by using the chair,'and which permits rapid andconvenient adjustment of the height of the seat and of the degree of effort necessary to ltilt the seat. To provide a chair supporting structure which may be readily assembled andrdismantled, and all parts of Which areaccessible. j To provide a chair steel various elements4 of which may be manufacturedat minimum cost, from-sheet steel and with the aid of dies thereby making these elements interchangeable. To provide a support for chairs, the elements of which cannot be readily broken, thereby insuring maximum service. To provide numerous other improvements in the details of construction of tiltable and revoluble chairs which will minimize the cost of manufacture of such chairs and which will increase the efficiency of operation of such devices.

Some of the novel features of chair construction, disclosed but not specifically claimed herein, form the subject of the following (3o-pending applica-tions for Letters Patent z--Serial No. 424,015,1i1ed November l5, 1920; and Serial No. 455,732, filed March ec, 1,921..

A clear conception'of embodimentsof the various novel features of the' present invention and of the operation of devices constructed in accordance therewith, mayv be had by referring to the drawings accom-l panying and forming' a part of vthis Speciiication,`in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts in the various views. l j

Fig. l is a fragmentary part sectional side elevation of a tiltable revolving chair.

2 is a bottom View of theV upper portion of the chair steel, which is attachable directly to and which is rotatable with the seat.

Fig. 3 is a top view of the pressed met-al standard embracing yoke. l

. Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the pressed metal standard embracing yoke.

Fig. 5 is a top view of the pressed metal spreader.

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the pressed metal spreader.

Fig. 7 is a top view of the pressed metal seat adjusting hand wheel.r

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary part sectional top view of the chair base.

Fig. 9 is an enlarged side elevation of the rear pressed metal spring supporting bar.

Fig. 10 is an enlarged front view of the rear pressed metal spring supporting bar.

Fig. 11 is an enlarged rear view oi the front pressed metal spring supporting bar.

Fig. 12 is an enlarged side elevation of the front pressed metal spring supporting bar.

Fig; 13 is an enlarged central vertical sec tion through thev pressed metal spring adjusting'. hand wheel. Y

Fig. 14 is an enlargedy front elevation ot the pressed metal spring adjusting hand wheel.

The tiltablerevolving chair illustrated in Fig. 1, comprises in general, a base, a vertical post or standard 4 having its lower portionyrigidly secured to the base, a bracket or yoke 5 freely rotatably Vmounted upon an a upper portion ol. the standard 4, an inverted U-shaped spreader7 pivotally connected. to

the yoke 5, spring mechanism for restraining the movement of the spreader 7 relatively to the yoke 5, elongated spider arms 3 rigidly attached to the upper corners of the spreader 4 7, and a seat 2attached to the front airdrear extremities of the spider arms 3.

The chair base, kshown in vdetail in Figs. 1 and 8, consists of four wooden legs33extending radially away from the lower. extremity of the steel post 4 and having their inner ends formed to closely lit the standard, a pressed metal top plate 26 havinga central upwardly projecting flange. 38 snugly fit: ting and rigidly secured to thev post 4 by means of a locking pin 28, a pressed metal I bottom plate 27 having a central vdownwardly projecting'- cup shaped portion 39 snugly fitting the lower end 'of kth'epostV 4, and wooden filler blocks 32 located in the corners 'formed by the coacting leg ends. TheY legs 3,3 are provided with upper and lower transverse recesses into which. the continuous peripheral flanges 34, 35 of the top and loottoin plates 26,27, are located. The continuous flanges 34, 35 of the top and bottom plates 26, 27 may also engage the corners of the adjacent filler blocks 32, which are thus heldin place. A hub clampingscrew 31 has screw thread engagement with a threaded hole in the lower end of the post 4, and has a head which engages the bottom 29 of the bottom plate portion 39. With this assemblage of elements, it will be noted that as the clamping screw 31 is tightened, the bottom plate 27 is urged upwardly along the post 4 and toward the lixed top plate 26, thereby firmly clamping the legs 33 and the filler blocks 32 between the top and bott-om plates 26, 27. It will also be obvious that the hub structure may be readily and completely 4dismantled by merely releasing the single hub clamping screw 31.

IThe vertical steel standard or postv 4, the lower end of which is rigidly secured to the chair base, has its upper portion screw threaded and provided with an elongated recess 21 in one side thereof, see Fig. 1. `A pressed metal seat adjusting hand wheel 14 has a central bore and oppositely located ridges 24 extending into said bore and adapted to coact with the threads on the post 4, see Figs. 1 and 7. The upper central portion of the hand wheel 14 is provided with an annular depression or recess within which a thrust bearing 15 of suitable design, may be located. A locking pin 17 the inner endof which is adapted to engage the recess 21 of the post 4 to lock the wheel 14 against movement about the post 4, is mounted in horizontally alined holes formed in downwardly distorted portions of the hand wheel l 14. The pin 17 is urged toward the recess 21 by means ot a helical compression spring 19 one end of which reacts against a surface of the hand wheel 14 and the opposite end of which bears against lateral `projections formed on the locking pin 17. The periphery of the hand wheel 17 is provided with a vertical notch 37 for holding the pin 17 in locking posi-v tion, aird has two detents 45 located on opposite sides of the notch 37 for holding the pin 17 in released position. The metal ot thev hand wheel 14 is also distorted to form a pair of oppositely located lugs 16 which extendk inwardly some distance above the thrust bearing recess.

The main bracket or yoke 5 comprises a hub and a pair of parallel vertical side walls 6 projecting forwardly from the hub, see Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4. The yoke 5 is formed entirely of sheet metal, the rear half of the hub being formed integral with the side walls 6 and the front half comprising a cap 25 which is rigidly secured to the rear halt by means of rivets or bolts. The yoke hub embraces and is freely rotatable about the upper portion of the standard or post 4, the hub being provided with a lower laterally proj ectingflange which rests upon the thrust bearing 15 and extendsv under the vlugs 16 of the 'adjusting hand wheel 14, thereby preventing extended axial separation of the hand `wheel 14 and yoke 5. The side walls 6 of the yoke 5 are provided with lower laterally projecting bosses 36 having alined openings which provide bearings for a horizontal pivot pin 13. The yoke side wallsA 6 are also provided with upper elongated slots 18 the opposite ends of which provide abutments for limiting the forward and rearward movement of the chair seat 2. The forward edges of the yoke side walls 6 are provided with spring bar supporting notches 3G.

The inverted U-shaped spreader 7 is formed of pressed sheet metal and comprise-s a pair of parallel side walls and a top connecting plate, see Figs. 1, 2, 5 and 6. The lower portions of the spreader side wallsare secured to the pivot pin 13 which is supported by the yoke bosses 36. The top plate of the spreader 7 is distorted to forma downwardly extending flange 22 which stilfens the structure and incidentally forms a recess which permits rearward swinging of the spreader 7 without interfering with the yoke cap 25. The vside walls of the spreader 7 are also connected by the cross rod 12 which is riveted to the spreader and passes through the elongated yokeslots 18. rlhe cross rod 12 is adapted to limit the extent of movement of the chair seat 2 by engaging the opposite ends of the slots 18.

The cross rod 12 and the spreader 7 are urged forwardly until the rod 12fengages the forward ends of the slots 18, by means of a pair of helical compression springs 8, the rear ends of which engage the rear pressed metal spring supporting bars 23 and the forward ends of which engage the front pressed metal spring supporting bars 9. The rear spring supporting bars 23 shown in detail in Figs. 9 and 10, are two innumber being identical in structure' and connected by means of rivets or bolts. Each bar 23 is provided with rear notches 40` adapted to engage the front notches 30 of the yoke side walls 6, and' is further provided with a pair of forwardly extending projections 41 adapted to t within the rear ends of the springs 8. The disposition of the projections 41'i's such that the springs have three point contact with the projections and with the adjacent bars 23. The medial portions of the bars 23 are distorted to form an elongated central opening` 43. The front'spring supporting bars 9 shown in detail in Figs. 11 and 12, are two in number being identical in structure Vand connected by means of rivets or bolts. Each bar 9 is provided with a pair of rearwardly extending projections42 adapted to fit within the front ends of the springs 8. The disposition of the projections 42 is such that the springs have three point contact with the projections and with the adjacent bars 9. The medial portions of the bars 9 are distorted to form a circular central opening 44. The spring adjusting rod 10 has a hooked rear end which engages the cross rod 12, and has a threaded forward end with which the pressed metal spring adjusting hand wheel 11, shown in detail in Figs. 13 and V14, coacts. The rod 12 extends through the central openings 43, 44 of the supporting bars 23, 9.-

i The spider rarms 3 are formed of pressed sheet metal and are rigidly attached to the upper side portions of the spreader 7. The chair seat 2 is rigidly attached to the ends of the spider arms 3 and has its forward portion located above the spreader 7 and the elements associated therewith. The seat 2 is preferably slightly inclined relativelyV to the horizontal as shown in Fig. 1, when the spreader cross rod 12 engages the forward ends of the slots 18.

During normal use of the chair, the seat 2, spider arms 3, spreader 7 and yoke 5 may be freely revolved about the standard or post 4 upon the thrustbearing 15, without varying the elevation of the seat 2.` The weight of the revoluble elements and of the occupant of the chair, is supported by thev base through the standard. or post 4 and the pressed metal nut 14. The chair seat 2 may be readily tilted rearwardly until the spreader cross rod 312 engages the rear Vendsof the elongatedyoke slots 18, the helical springs 8 being compressed during such tilting of the cha-ir seat 2. Due to the location of the slots 18 directly above the spreader pivot`13, thereis but slight vertical displacement of the cross rod 12 and of the adjacent end of the hookrod 10 during tilting of the seat 2. This transverse displacement of the rear end of the hook rod 10 is permitted by the elongated opening 43 in the rear'spring supporting bar 41, and does not affectthe'front end of the rod 10. The springs 8 are held against transverse displacement during tilting of the chair seat 2 by virtue of the interlock between the spring supporting bars 23 and thev yoke side walls 6 afforded by the notches 40, 30, and also by confining the movement of the forward spring supporting cross bar to motion of translation.

If it is desired to vary the height of the chair seat 2, the locking pin 17 must be released andthe adjusting hand wheel 14 rotated relatively to the stationary post 4. Suchv rotation of the hand Wheel 14 causes the same to advancev along the threaded portion of the post 4 by virtue` of the engagement of the detents or projections 24 with the screw threads.` During such adjustment of the hand wheel 14, the end of the pin 17 may be permitted to rest in one of the notches 45y in the wheel rim, thus retaining the pin 17 withdrawn. then the desired position of adjustment has been reached, the pin 17 may again be turned into alinenient with the recess 37 and permitted to enter the recess 21 of the post 4,

^ use of steel throughout the structure.

whereupon the hand wheel 14is again locked to the post4. If it is desired to vary the degree of effort requiredto tilt the chair seat 2, it is necessary to manipulate the spring adjusting hand wheel 11 relatively to the hook rod 10. By thus adjusting the hand wheel'11, the degree of compression of the springs 8 may be readilyvaried to suit the desired conditions. Eitherof these adjustments may be quickly made, the adjusting hand wheels 11, 14 being readily accessible. f

It is noteworthy that the use of cast metal elements is entirely eliminated in the assemblage of the chair. The hub plates 26, 27, hand wheel 14, yoke 5, cap 25, spreader 7, spider arms 3, rear bars 23, front bars 9 and hand wheel 11 may all be formed of sheet steel with the aid of` dies, thus making these elements interchangeable with like elements of other chairs and eliminating necessity kof other `expensive machining operations. The post 4, pivot 18, cross rod 12 and hook rod 10 may be readily formed of standard bar steel, thereby permitting tle t will also be obvious that the same structure may readily be used on chairs of all grades. In the cheaper grades, the chair steel may be coated by painting while in the higher grades, the structure may be given a highly finished appearance by nickel plating. The cheaper structure may also be provided Witha plate bearing 15, while the higher grade structure may be provided with a ball bearing l5.

It will also be-noted that the entire structure may be readily assembled and dismantled. The legs 33 and the filler blocks 32 may be removed by manipulation of the single locking screw 31. The yoke 5 and the associated revoluble elements may be removed from the post 4 by releasing the locking pin 17 and working the hand wheel 14 upwardly from the post 4. The hand wheel 14 may then be slipped laterally from the yoke hub flange. The springs 8 and the bars 23, 9 may be removed by unscrewing the hand wheel 11.

The detents 24,0f the adjusting nut 14 may be formed with the aid of an internal die member which afterformation of the local detente 24 may be removed by rotating the die through an angle of 90 degrees. The other elements may be readily formed with simple dies at extremely low cost'.

It should be understood that it is not desired to limit the pr-esentyinvention to the exact details of construction herein shown and described, for various modifications within the scope of the claims may occur to persons skilled in the art.

It is claimed and desired to secure by Letters Patent 1. In a chair, an upright post, a yoke` comprising a hub freely rotatable about said post and a plate extending away from said hub, said hub being formed in sections one of which is formed integral with said plate, and a seat supported 0n said plate.

2. In a chair, an upright post, a yoke comprising a hub freely rotatable about said post and a pair of plates extending away from said hub, said hub being formed of sheet metal sections one of whichis formed integral with said plates, and a seat tiltably associated with said yoke.

3. In a chair, an upright post, a yoke comprising a hub embracing said post and a pair of plates extending forwardly of said chair and away from said hub, said hub being formed in sections one of which is formed integral with said plates, means for adjusting said hub along said post, and a seat tiltably associated with said yoke.

4. In a chair, a base, an upright post rigidly attached to said base, a yoke comprising a hub freely rotatable about said post, said hub being formed in sections laterally united in a plane intersecting said post, means for adjusting said hub along said post, and a seat tiltably associated with one of said hub sections of said yoke.

5. In a chair, anupright post, a-yoke conlprising a hub embracing said ypost and plate extending away from said hub, said hub being formed 1n sections oneof which is formed integral with sald plate, a seat pivotallyv supported on said plate, and a stop movable by said seat, said plate having an opening the` opposite ends of which are engageable with said stops to limit the pivotal movement ofi said seat. f

G. In a chair, an upright post, a yoke comprising a hub freely rotatable about said post and a plate extending away from said hub, said hub being formed in sections one of whichis formed integral with said p'ldte, a seat pivotally supported on said plate, and a stop carried by said seat, said plate having an opening the .opposite ends of which are engageable with said stop to limit the pivotal movement of said seat.

7 In a chair, a base, an upright post, said post being rigidly attached to said base, a yoke comprising a hub freely rotatable about said post and a pair of plates extending forwardly away from said hub, saidl hub being formed insections one of which is formed integral with at least one of said plates, a seat pivotally supported on said plates, and a cross rodcarried by said seat, said plates having openings the opposite ends of which are engageable with said rod to limit the pivotal movement of said seat.

8. In a chair, an upright post, a yoke comprising ,a hub embracing said post and a pair of plates extending away from said llO hub, aseat pivotally supported on said plates, resilient means coacting` with said plates, and means connecting,` said resilient means With said seat, said plates having` openings for limiting the pivotal movement of said seat and said openings being pene trated by said connecting means.

9. As an article of manufacture, a sheet metal spring reaction bar for tiltable chairs, comprising` a pair of connected plates having their opposite ends bent away from each other to provide three point Contact with the spring ends and haringen opening between the medial portions thereof.

l0. As an article of manufacture, a pressed sheet metal spring reaction har for tiltable chairs, comprising tWo plates having their ends bent a-Way from each other and having their medial portions oppositely distorted to form a through opening.

In testimony whereof, the signature of the inventor is aixed hereto.

osWALD H. HANSEN. 

